Just before leaving St. Augustine, I photographed the lighthouse. This was by far the most challenging of the photo shoots during my long road trip.
Here were some of the issues:
Here are the finished images:
Thanks for looking...and reading!
Glenn
Here were some of the issues:
- I visited the lighthouse initially on Saturday. The place was so crowded that I could hardly find a parking space. I've visited a lot of lighthouses in my time, but I've never experienced anything like this. There was no chance to capture any decent images, so I left.
- I caught a break the next day. It was Sunday and it was pouring rain! So, I was waiting at the entrance at 9:00am when the doors opened. Naturally, I was the only one there.
Subscribe to see EXIF info for this image (if available) - Then there was the no tripod policy and the no "big cameras" policy. Initially, I removed the grip from the D850 to make it look smaller. I figured I would have to handhold--not a good thing given the dynamic range of light inside the structure. But, when I entered the complex, I asked why tripods weren't permitted. I was told that tripods make it difficult for visitors to maneuver the very narrow staircase. So, I offered to use the tripod only until the first visitor entered the lighthouse--and they agreed!
- As so often happens this time of the year, I experienced the dreaded "Christmas Tree Curse" again. This is when a Christmas tree is positioned in the very place that I need to position the tripod for the best shot! This happens quite often in buildings during the holiday season.
- So, I did my best to position the camera on the floor of the lighthouse...and started quickly shooting--hoping to get some shots before people started entering the building. After checking a few images on the back screen, I was alarmed to see that large Hefty garbage bags were tied underneath the lower stairs--ruining all the images. I learned that those bags were hastily placed there the day before because a few musicians were performing under the steps and dirt was falling on their heads from people walking above them. I climbed the stairs and did my best to remove the bags--but there were still fragments that had to be removed in PS.
- For the shot looking down, I had to handhold. Although I was still using my tripod, I would have needed a boom to position the lens that far over the railing. So, I used Live View and 9 frames per second and hoped for the best.
- The bright lights shining down were a major problem. Here are a couple of the frames of how I reduced some of the glare by blocking it with my hand and blending the best portions of that shot with the others to salvage most of the picture.
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Here are the finished images:
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Subscribe to see EXIF info for this image (if available)
Thanks for looking...and reading!
Glenn
